777 Parts Shortage? #AvMRO

Wed, 2013-03-20 14:26

Locatory claims there's a worldwide shortage of standard spare parts for the Boeing 777, based on feedback it has heard from several customers.

We've seen teardowns occurring on younger and younger aircraft and engines, but the popular 777 has not yet been affected by this phenomenon, except for aircraft that crashed, such as widely covered British Airways incident at London Heathrow.

However, Locatory says three 777s recently have been scrapped.

"The pivotal issue here is the stronger role that economics plays in determining aircraft values. Quite simply, the 777-200/ER is beaten by the A330-300 for economics on shorter-range journeys and by its larger counterpart--the 777-300/ER on longer range sectors, leaving the jet somewhat obsolete. This is reflected in pre-owned market values, with -300ERs fetching values 50% higher than that of similar vintage 777-200ER jets," says Zilvinas Sadauskas, CEO of Locatory.com, which is a Avia Solutions company.